


Kisumi You

by WhyTheHandbasket



Category: Free!
Genre: First Person, Great KisuHaru Event, M/M, WTF is a middle school reunion?
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-08-14
Updated: 2015-08-14
Packaged: 2018-04-14 15:28:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,247
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4569663
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WhyTheHandbasket/pseuds/WhyTheHandbasket
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Kisumi attends his middle school reunion.<br/>Haru is there.<br/>Other stuff happens, too.<br/>God, I suck at summaries.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Kisumi You

**Author's Note:**

> Kisumi's POV- first person.  
> Seventies folk music.  
> This is part of the KisHaru challenge.

 

 

 

_You walked into the party, like you were walking onto a yacht…_

Not really, but I had that song stuck in my brain for some reason. I loved the music of that era, it was one of my motivations to work so hard to learn English. Well, I learned enough to understand the lyrics, and Google was good for the rest.

Anyway, I walked into the party, not at all like I was walking onto a yacht. I wasn’t completely sure why I’d even come, what they were thinking in throwing a ten year middle school reunion. Who threw a middle school reunion to begin with? And only after ten years? Most people would be barely out of college, just starting their careers, not much to brag about yet.

And then there was me.

After high school, I didn't want to become a salaryman, and I wasn't a good enough basketball player to get a scholarship, so I was at a bit of a loss. I didn’t want to go to college without a plan, and I knew I wanted to see the world, wanted something other than Iwatobi. With that in mind, I took my smile and my charm and my smattering of English gleaned from '70s folk music, and became a flight attendant. Steward.

Coffee, tea or me, anyone?

Nothing so scandalous that the family would tell stories about me in hushed whispers at family reunions, but just _not quite right_. Someone who was on the lunatic fringe, who didn’t do exactly as expected, a bit of an embarrassment, only spoken about as an object lesson.

When the invitation to the reunion came, I laughed. Like I said, who has a middle school reunion? But I was not stupid and after thinking about it for a while, the reason occurred to me. There were status conscious, shallow people from that school, in that class. Have you seen ‘The Help’? I think I’ve seen it a at least a dozen times, it was on the in-flight movie rotation for a month or more. Great movie, lovely acting. I’ve always loved Emma Stone, ever since Easy-A. Anyway. These people put Hilly Holbrook to shame, with their judging and gossiping, and I’d bet they wanted more than anything to hobnob with the famous, to have a name to drop at their next gathering. And there were a couple of people from our class who were currently making waves, so to speak.

Tachibana Makoto and Nanase Haruka. The swimmers from Iwatobi who, along with another Iwatobi native, Matsuoka Rin, were currently the darlings of the swimming world, the local boys who burst onto the world stage during the 2016 Olympics, drawing attention to themselves and Japan’s swimming program. They really came into their own in 2020, bringing home medals of all colors for the ‘Glory of Japan’ or some such. Their performance in the medley relay was textbook, breaking world records and leaving the second place team, the Americans, in their wake. Combined with their individual performances, they collectively earned ten medals; four gold, four silver, and two bronze.

It was also common knowledge that they came back to Iwatobi every summer to see their families and train, helping out at the local swim club, coaching local swimmers and teaching some classes. So, the tenth reunion, scheduled during the summer, made so much sense to me.

I originally had no intention of attending the reunion. I had been friends with all three of the swimmers, Rin and I had attended elementary school together, and Makoto and Haru were friends in middle school. Well, in actuality, Makoto was a friend in middle school. Haru was complicated. Haru was my first real, major crush, and I was so damned awkward around him. I didn’t know how to be cool, I had absolutely no ability to chill, and it showed. He hated me. He hated the way I’d hang on Makoto (I liked Makoto, but EVERYONE that knows Makoto crushes on him a little bit), dragging him off to play basketball. Much of that was my insanely stupid attempt at making Haru jealous, hoping he’d see me as something desirable; but I also generally was a friendly guy and I liked making friends.

I hadn’t seen either of them for years, not since High School, when I had unexpectedly seen Rin a few months ago; he was on a flight I was working—Tokyo to Sydney, nonstop. He still trained in Australia for part of the year.

“Welcome to Japa...Rin?”

“Kisumi? Holy Fuck! I had no idea you were stewardessing. Flight attending. Whatever, dammit, you know what I mean!”

I couldn’t help but laugh. “I got it! Yes, I have been for a while. Find your seat and I’ll stop by when I can, I’d love to catch up.”

“Yes! Sounds good, please do.”

We chatted throughout the flight, and made plans to meet that evening for drinks. We had a great time talking. I found out that he and Makoto were together, apparently had been since High School. Which was a surprise to me, I really thought it was just a matter of time before Haru and Makoto got together. I was smart enough not to say that, I didn’t know what the group dynamic was since I hadn’t seen any of them since high school, and I’d never seen all three of them together.

“Oi, Kisumi, let me ask you a question. I told the guys that I saw you on the plane, and Haru said you’d crushed pretty hard on Makoto in middle school. Is that right?”

“He would say that, wouldn’t he? I did hang on Makoto, but he wasn’t who I was crushing on. I had the biggest crush on Mr. Short, dark and fishy. I had no idea how to do anything, though, so I just flailed around and acted like an idiot. I don’t think he ever did get it. But, to answer your question and to be totally honest, I think everyone who knows him crushes on Makoto a little.”

Rin flashed me a grin. “You’re right about that. Fucking Makoto, he’s got everyone fooled. I’m sorry, I wasn’t trying to imply anything; I just wanted to make sure that everything was cool. Are you going home any time soon? We’re going to be in Iwatobi this summer; you should totally come hang out. I know Makoto would love to see you, and Haru, well...Haru’s Haru, and you never really know what that mackerel is thinking. He’s gotten better, though. He’s learned to use his words, at least."

By this time we were both a little drunk, headed towards very. Next stop, No Filterville. So I asked.

"So, you and Haru, never a thing? I know he was still hung up on you leaving when I knew him."

"Naw, man. In high school he was oblivious, not interested in much except swimming. In college, he discovered boys. And girls, actually, but he leans toward boys. So by the time he looked at me, I was with Mako. Not that I would have objected to a triumvirate, but neither of them was into each other. Too much brotherly stuff going on there. And, since I was definitely not into playing 'Rin and his two boyfriends'—which never ends well—we dropped it and never looked back. Don't regret a thing...what about you?"

"I've been wandering the world, guy in every port kind of thing. Don't really know what I want to be when I grow up." I answered with a grin and a wink. I was glad to talk to someone who I knew, who knew me. Sometimes things get lonely in the skies.

Ron laughed. "I hear you. I have no idea what I'm going to do when we retire. Mako's going to coach, he has his degree and everything; Haru has his art; I've got a bullshit degree and no fallback. My English is pretty good, though. Maybe teaching or translating? Who knows? That's not going to be for at least four years, I figure we have one more Olympics in us."

I suddenly remembered the reunion. "Did you guys get the middle school reunion invite?"

"Yes, we did.” Rin lets out a sharp laugh,”It's so ridiculous. Seriously. Who has a ten year middle school reunion?" He rolled his eyes.

I smirked, "I know, right? I'm planning a trip home about that time, and I might go, though. Get me out of the house and away from the oh-so-polite but oh-so-disappointed family. Let me know if you guys decide to go, I'd love to see you all again. Friendly faces might make it better.”  

“Will do, if I tell Mako you're going, he may decide to do so as well. He’s always spoke highly of you. We should get together even if we don’t go to the reunion. Here, let me give you my number, text me when you’re in town and we can meet up.” Rin got his phone out, and we exchanged numbers.

Shortly after that, we parted. I had a flight in the morning, and Rin had training. With a promise to keep in contact, I left him at the bar, heading for my hotel room.

 

I did text them when I was in town, they were as well, but we couldn’t find a good time to meet up. They were busier than usual, last summer’s win had made them much more in demand, harder for them to get any free time. I did chat with Makoto a time or two and saw Rin at the store, but other than that the first chance we were going to have to meet up was the reunion. I was oddly excited about it. I wondered if Haru would just pretend I didn’t exist as usual, or if I could pry some conversation out of him. I knew he was still beautiful, and I had no idea if we could ever be friends, let alone anything else, but I was very interested in finding out.

So, here I was, walking into the party, I mean into the middle school gym, feeling both like a fool and like a little kid. _Send in the clowns…._

Looking around, I saw Makoto first—there was no way to miss him, he was so tall and broad (I’d read in some American newspaper that he had ‘Backstroke for days!’ I laughed so hard, I thought I’d pass out.) I headed over that way, but it looked like they were being swarmed by people and it was impossible for me to get through. Makoto looked over the crowd and saw me, smiled, and reached behind him to snag somebody and drag them through the crowd. They emerged, and Makoto grabbed me before I could see who it was he’d brought, pulling me into a hug.

“Kisumi! It’s been too long, I’m so glad to see you!” He pulled me and his captive over to a small table in the corner, a four seater. I finally got a glimpse of dark hair. Haru. He pushed us both into chairs and slid into one himself. “Rin can deal with them.” He waved in the direction of the crowd, cheerfully throwing his boyfriend under the bus, ”If he doesn’t show up in a few, I’ll go rescue him. So tell us, Kisumi, what have you been up to?”

I couldn’t help it, I had to laugh. Haru looked so damned _disgruntled_ from first being swarmed by the crowds, and then dragged around like a rag doll by his best friend. He glared at me, those beautiful blue eyes the same as ever. I tried, really I did, but it was so hard to get it under control, and his glare was not helping.

“Sorry, Haru. You just...you look...aw, fuck. Gimme a sec, ok?” I put my head down and took a couple of deep breaths, trying to stop the giggles. _Send in the clowns_ , indeed.

Calmer, I sat up and smiled. “Sorry, let’s try this again. Hi, Makoto! Hi, Haru! I’ve not seen you in so long; I know what you’ve been up too, of course, but how are you doing?”

Makoto returned my smile. “We’re good, really. Things get a little crazy, sometimes we get overwhelmed, but we’re fine. The crowds are a bit much. We thought things around here would be more normal, that people would treat us like they always have. That was what we’d hoped. So far, it’s been a mixed bag. The older people still treat us like we’re going to rob the store or graffiti the building, but those our age don’t. It’s hard to relax, to be honest.”

“That sucks, guys. I’m sorry to hear that. I can imagine how hard that is for you.” I glanced at Haru. He was looking down, staring at his hands. It appeared he was trying to gather his thoughts, ground himself. I reached out a hand a touched his finger. He jerked his head up and looked at me. “I’m sorry, Haru. I shouldn’t have laughed; I know how uncomfortable you must be.” His eyes widened a fraction, and he nodded, accepting my words as truth.

“It’s ok. It gets easier; I just wasn’t prepared for it.” He explained, “Normally I know when there will be people paying attention to me. In Tokyo, I’m just another guy on the street.”

I hummed in agreement. “I’ll bet, there are so many people there.” I turned my attention back to Makoto, wanting to give Haru the chance to collect himself some more. “To answer your question, after high school I decided I wanted to see the world, so I became a flight attendant. I’m sure Rin’s told you that. Other than becoming the ‘son we almost don’t discuss’, I’m good. I’ve seen a lot of places, been a lot of places. Still not sure what I want to be when I grow up.”

Makoto chuckled. “It’s tough. I’m not sure any of us really know that until we find ourselves adult and working some job or another. It’s ok to not have that figured out; we’re only twenty-five.” He shot a quick glance at Haru. “I’m going to go rescue Rin, do you mind staying with Haru for a bit?”

“Not at all.” I said, totally serious. I’m not sure the crush ever went away, if the way my heart is beating is any indication. “I’ll stay here as long as he wants me to.”

Haru glanced at me through his bangs and shot me a slight grin. “Stay if you want, I don’t mind.”

 _Imagine me and you, I do..._ Yup. Crush confirmed. Wonder if it’s just a crush?

“Ok, Haru.” I grinned back. “I’ll stay.” I slid over into the chair next to him so we wouldn’t have to yell across the table. He looked at me askance. “I just don’t want to have to yell across, is this ok?”

He nodded, allowing the change in position. I leaned on the table, not wanting to intrude too much on his space, and said something I’d been wanting to tell him for a while.

“I’m sorry, Haru, if I made you uncomfortable in middle school. That was never my intention, really. I just...I just. I had _such a crush_ on you.” He lifted his head and looked at me sharply. ”You were the first person I ever crushed on, and I didn’t know what to do about it, so I flailed about and did everything wrong. I’m sorry.”

He turned his gaze back onto the table in front of him. “I always thought it was Makoto that you liked. I never knew that you liked me. I was so damned jealous of my best friend, and I didn’t know how to act, so I took it out on you.” Looking up at me, he smirked, just a little. “I had a crush on you as well, back then. It’s so strange that neither of us noticed.”

_Somewhere in his smile he knows…_

I threw my proverbial hat into the ring, my heart beating louder than it ever had. “Well, at least now we’re on the same page. Would you like to blow this popsicle stand, maybe walk around or go down to the shore?” His eyes glittered, and he nodded, standing.

“I’d like that, Kisumi. I’d like to get to know you without all the other...stuff.”

I joined him at the end of the table, and looked around for Makoto or Rin. They were together, dancing to a slow song about finding love in a homeless place, or some such. The dreck that was popular music in 2011, I’m embarrassed for my whole class. Damn. Except Gaga, Gaga is amazing. Anyway.

Makoto looked over at us as we moved away and grinned, winking at me. That bastard, I knew what he meant. I bet Rin told him about the crush, and he probably figured out Haru’s a while ago. Scheming manipulator, that’s _exactly_ what Rin was talking about. I mentally shrugged; he’d done me a favor, no sense getting upset about it. I let Haru walk in front of me as we wove our way through the tables and out the nearest door.

_We were born before the wind…_

There was one song that I adored, one song that always reminded me of Haru, of Iwatobi. That reminded me of the feeling of being in love, the heart clench and the longing, the urge to touch and the craving to feel. It ran through my head on repeat that night, as we walked down to the shore and sat in the sand, the wind blowing and the tide turning.

_Smell the sea and feel the sky…_

We didn’t talk a lot, Haru is a man of silences that speak louder than declarations, of quiet stillness that reaches out and surrounds you with a sense of peace, with a sense of calm. I found myself just basking in that calmness, having never really understood that it was something I’d craved, something I needed. Our conversation was slow and easy, no awkward pauses or rushes to fill the emptiness. It was exactly why we were here.

_I will be coming home…_

When I finally got the nerve to reach my hand out to him, he met me halfway. We didn’t move from our places in the sand, we didn’t look at each other; we just sat there, holding hands, breathing in the sea, basking in the peace and enjoying the feeling of home. This was home.

_I want to rock your gypsy soul…_

I am still not sure what’s going to come of this, where we’re going or how it’s going to work, or even if it’s going to work. But I know, deep down, that if we really want it to, it will. I know that I want it to work. I think, no, I _know_ , that I’ve always loved him, that he’s my first love and possibly my last one. But, I also know that life sometimes takes us places we don’t want to go, leaves us in pieces we can’t glue together. For now, though, I’m content to follow his lead, let him guide me in this dance of texts and Skype and layovers and stolen weekends.

I'm content with us.

 

_Then magnificently we will flow_

_Into the mystic..._

 

 

 

**Author's Note:**

> Not enough happy Kisumi in the fandom!
> 
> Let me know what you think, please.  
> If you would like any song/lyrics identified, I'll be happy to, just let me know.


End file.
